This is a list of

popular science Popular science (also called pop-science or popsci) is an interpretation of science intended for a general audience. While science journalism focuses on recent scientific developments, popular science is more broad ranging. It may be written ...

book A book is a structured presentation of recorded information, primarily verbal and graphical, through a medium. Originally physical, electronic books and audiobooks are now existent. Physical books are objects that contain printed material, ...

s concerning

evolution Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...

, sorted by surname of the author.

B

* Paul M. Bingham and Joanne Souza (2009). '' Death from a Distance and the Birth of a Humane Universe: Human Evolution, Behavior, History, and Your Future''.

C

* Sean B. Carroll (2006). '' The Making of the Fittest: DNA and the Ultimate Forensic Record of Evolution''. * Sean B. Carroll (2005). '' Endless Forms Most Beautiful: The New Science of Evo Devo''. *

Brian Charlesworth Brian Charlesworth (born 29 April 1945) is a British evolutionary biologist at the University of Edinburgh, and editor of ''Biology Letters''. Since 1997, he has been Royal Society Research Professor at the Institute of Evolutionary Biology (IE ...

and

Deborah Charlesworth Deborah Charlesworth (née Maltby; born 1943) is a population geneticist from the UK, notable for her important discoveries in population genetics and evolutionary biology. Her most notable research is in understanding the evolution of reco ...

(2003). '' Evolution: A Very Short Introduction''. * Matteo Conti (2008). '' The Selfish Cell: An evolutionary defeat''. *

Jerry Coyne Jerry Allen Coyne (born December 30, 1949) is an American biologist and skeptic known for his work on speciation and his commentary on intelligent design. A professor emeritus at the University of Chicago in the Department of Ecology and Evolu ...

(2009). '' Why Evolution Is True''.

D

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

(1859). ''

The Origin of Species ''On the Origin of Species'' (or, more completely, ''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life'')The book's full original title was ''On the Origin of Species by M ...

''. * Charles Darwin (1871). ''

The Descent of Man ''The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex'' is a book by English natural history, naturalist Charles Darwin, first published in 1871, which applies evolutionary theory to human evolution, and details his theory of sexual selection, ...

''. *

Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, zoologist, science communicator and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was Simonyi Professor for the Publ ...

(1976). ''

The Selfish Gene ''The Selfish Gene'' is a 1976 book on evolution by ethologist Richard Dawkins that promotes the gene-centred view of evolution, as opposed to views focused on the organism and the group. The book builds upon the thesis of George C. Willia ...

''. * Richard Dawkins (1982). ''

The Extended Phenotype ''The Extended Phenotype'' is a 1982 book by the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, in which the author introduced a biological concept of the same name. The book's main idea is that phenotype should not be ''limited'' to biological proces ...

''. * Richard Dawkins (1986). ''

The Blind Watchmaker ''The Blind Watchmaker: Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe without Design'' is a 1986 book by Richard Dawkins, in which the author presents an explanation of, and argument for, the theory of evolution by means of natural selecti ...

''. * Richard Dawkins (1995). ''

River out of Eden ''River Out of Eden: A Darwinian View of Life'' is a 1995 popular science book by Richard Dawkins. The book is about Darwinian evolution and summarizes the topics covered in his earlier books, ''The Selfish Gene'', ''The Extended Phenotype'' an ...

''. * Richard Dawkins (1996). ''

Climbing Mount Improbable ''Climbing Mount Improbable'' is a 1996 popular science book by Richard Dawkins. The book is about probability and how it applies to the theory of evolution. It is designed to debunk claims by creationists about the probability of naturalistic m ...

''. * Richard Dawkins (2004). ''

The Ancestor's Tale ''The Ancestor's Tale: A Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Life'' is a 2004 science book by Richard Dawkins and Yan Wong that delves into the topic of evolution. The book adopts a unique approach, retracing the path of humans in reverse chronological ...

''. * Richard Dawkins (2009). '' The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution''. *

Daniel Dennett Daniel Clement Dennett III (March 28, 1942 – April 19, 2024) was an American philosopher and cognitive scientist. His research centered on the philosophy of mind, the philosophy of science, and the philosophy of biology, particularly as those ...

(1995). ''

Darwin's Dangerous Idea ''Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life'' is a 1995 book by the philosopher Daniel Dennett, in which the author looks at some of the repercussions of Darwinian theory. The crux of the argument is that, whether or not Darwi ...

''. * Daniel Dennett (2003). ''

Freedom Evolves ''Freedom Evolves'' is a 2003 popular science and philosophy book by Daniel C. Dennett. Dennett describes the book as an installment of a lifelong philosophical project, earlier parts of which were '' The Intentional Stance'', '' Consciousness Ex ...

''. *

Jared Diamond Jared Mason Diamond (born September 10, 1937) is an American scientist, historian, and author. In 1985 he received a MacArthur Genius Grant, and he has written hundreds of scientific and popular articles and books. His best known is '' Guns, G ...

(1991). ''

The Third Chimpanzee ''The Third Chimpanzee: The Evolution and Future of the Human Animal'' is a 1991 book by academic and popular science author Jared Diamond, in which the author explores concepts relating to the animal origins of human behavior. The book follows ...

: The Evolution and Future of the Human Animal '' *

Theodosius Dobzhansky Theodosius Grigorievich Dobzhansky (; ; January 25, 1900 – December 18, 1975) was a Russian-born American geneticist and evolutionary biologist. He was a central figure in the field of evolutionary biology for his work in shaping the modern ...

(1937; 2nd ed 1941; 3rd ed 1951). ''

Genetics and the Origin of Species ''Genetics and the Origin of Species'' is a 1937 book by the Ukrainian-American evolutionary biologist Theodosius Dobzhansky. It is regarded as one of the most important works of Modern synthesis (20th century), modern synthesis and was one of the ...

''.

E

Niles Eldredge Niles Eldredge ( ; born August 25, 1943) is an American biologist and paleontologist, who, along with Stephen Jay Gould, proposed the theory of punctuated equilibrium in 1972. Education Eldredge began his undergraduate studies in Latin at Colum ...

(2001). '' The Triumph of Evolution: and the Failure of Creationism''.

F

* Daniel J. Fairbanks (2007). '' Relics of Eden: The Powerful Evidence of Evolution in Human DNA''.

G

* Ann Gibbons (2007). '' The First Human: The Race to Discover Our Earliest Ancestors''. *

Stephen Jay Gould Stephen Jay Gould ( ; September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was an American Paleontology, paleontologist, Evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, and History of science, historian of science. He was one of the most influential and widely re ...

(1977). ''

Ever Since Darwin ''Ever Since Darwin'' is a 1977 book by the paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould. Gould's first book of collected essays, it originated from his monthly column "This View of Life," published in ''Natural History'' magazine. Edwin Barber—who wa ...

''. * Stephen Jay Gould (1989). '' Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History''. * Stephen Jay Gould (1996). '' Full House: The Spread of Excellence from Plato to Darwin''.

H

Marc Hauser Marc D. Hauser (born October 25, 1959) is an American evolutionary biologist and a researcher in primate behavior, animal cognition and human behavior and neuroscience. Hauser was a professor of psychology at Harvard University from 1998 to 2 ...

(2006). ''

Moral Minds ''Moral Minds: How Nature Designed Our Universal Sense of Right and Wrong'' is a 2006 book by former Harvard psychologist Marc Hauser in which he develops an empirically grounded theory to explain morality as a universal grammar. He draws evid ...

''. * Jay Hosler (2011). '' Evolution: The Story of Life on Earth''. *

Julian Huxley Sir Julian Sorell Huxley (22 June 1887 – 14 February 1975) was an English evolutionary biologist, eugenicist and Internationalism (politics), internationalist. He was a proponent of natural selection, and a leading figure in the mid-twentiet ...

(1942). '' Evolution: The Modern Synthesis''. *

Thomas Henry Huxley Thomas Henry Huxley (4 May 1825 – 29 June 1895) was an English biologist and anthropologist who specialized in comparative anatomy. He has become known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his advocacy of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The stor ...

(1863). '' Evidence as to Man's Place in Nature''.

J

* Donald Johansson (2006). '' From Lucy to Language: Revised, Updated, and Expanded''. *

Shaun Johnston Shaun Johnston is a Canadian movie and theater actor best known for his role as Jack Bartlett on the CBC Television, CBC drama Heartland (Canadian TV series), ''Heartland'', which debuted in October 2007. He co-founded the Shadow Theatre in Edm ...

(2017). '' Re-thinking What it Means We Evolved: A new framework for universal moral values''. *

(2020). '' Are You wonderful? Good Science Says, Yes: How to tell good science from bad''. * Alison Jolly (2001). '' Lucy's Legacy: Sex and Intelligence in Human Evolution''. *

Steve Jones Steve or Steven Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Steve Jones (English presenter) (born 1945), English musician, disk jockey, television presenter, and voice-over artist *Steve Jones (musician) (born 1955), English rock and roll guitar ...

(1995). ''

The Language of the Genes ''The Language of the Genes'' (HarperCollins, ) is a popular science book by Steve Jones (biologist), Steve Jones about genetics and evolution. It followed a 1991 series of Reith Lectures by Jones with the same title.David Starr Jordan David Starr Jordan (January 19, 1851 – September 19, 1931) was the founding president of Stanford University, serving from 1891 to 1913. He was an ichthyologist during his research career. Prior to serving as president of Stanford Universi ...

(1901). '' The Blood of the Nation: A Study in the Decay of Races by the Survival of the Unfit''. *

Joseph Jordania Joseph Jordania ( Georgian იოსებ ჟორდანია, born February 12, 1954, and also known under the misspelling of Joseph Zhordania) is an Australian– Georgian ethnomusicologist and evolutionary musicologist and professor. He ...

(2006). ''

Who Asked the First Question? Joseph Jordania ( Georgian იოსებ ჟორდანია, born February 12, 1954, and also known under the misspelling of Joseph Zhordania) is an Australian– Georgian ethnomusicologist and evolutionary musicologist and professor. He i ...

: The Origins of Human Choral Singing, Intelligence, Language and Speech''. *

(2011). ''

Why do People Sing? Music in Human Evolution Joseph Jordania ( Georgian იოსებ ჟორდანია, born February 12, 1954, and also known under the misspelling of Joseph Zhordania) is an Australian– Georgian ethnomusicologist and evolutionary musicologist and professor. He ...

''.

K

Marc W. Kirschner Marc Wallace Kirschner (born February 28, 1945) is an American cell biologist and biochemist and the founding chair of the Department of Systems Biology at Harvard Medical School. He is known for major discoveries in cell and developmental biolog ...

and

John C. Gerhart The theory of facilitated variation demonstrates how seemingly complex biological systems can arise through a limited number of regulatory genetic changes, through the differential re-use of pre-existing developmental components. The theory was p ...

(2006). '' The Plausibility of Life: Resolving Darwin's Dilemma''. *

Peter Kropotkin Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin (9 December 1842 – 8 February 1921) was a Russian anarchist and geographer known as a proponent of anarchist communism. Born into an aristocratic land-owning family, Kropotkin attended the Page Corps and later s ...

(1902). '' Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution''. * Arik Kershenbaum (2020). '' The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy - What Animals on Earth Reveal about Aliens – and Ourselves''.

L

* Nick Lane (2010). '' Life Ascending: The Ten Great Inventions of Evolution''. * Gabriel E. Lasker (1961). ''

The Evolution of Man ''The Evolution of Man'' is the fourth studio album by English musician Example, released on 19 November 2012 through Ministry of Sound. Background and development Example tweeted that on the plane to Sydney, he planned on writing some songs f ...

: A Brief Introduction to Physical Anthropology''. *

Daniel Levitin Daniel Joseph Levitin, FRSC (born December 27, 1957) is an American-Canadian polymath, cognitive psychologist, neuroscientist, writer, musician, and record producer. He is the author of four ''New York Times'' best-selling books, including '' T ...

(2008). ''

The World in Six Songs ''The World in Six Songs: How the Musical Brain Created Human Nature'' is a popular science book written by the McGill University neuroscientist Daniel J. Levitin, first published by Dutton Penguin in the U.S. and Canada in 2008. It was updated a ...

: How the Musical Brain Created Human Nature''.

M

John Maynard Smith John Maynard Smith (6 January 1920 – 19 April 2004) was a British mathematical and theoretical biology, theoretical and mathematical evolutionary biologist and geneticist. Originally an aeronautical engineer during the Second World War, he ...

(1958). '' The Theory of Evolution''. * John Maynard Smith (1972). '' On Evolution''. * John Maynard Smith (1978). ''

The Evolution of Sex ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' ...

''. * John Maynard Smith (1982). ''

Evolution and the Theory of Games ''Evolution and the Theory of Games'' is a book by the British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist John Maynard Smith on evolutionary game theory. The book was initially published in December 1982 by Cambridge University Press. Overvie ...

''. * John Maynard Smith (1989). ''

Evolutionary Genetics Population genetics is a subfield of genetics that deals with genetic differences within and among populations, and is a part of evolutionary biology. Studies in this branch of biology examine such phenomena as adaptation, speciation, and popu ...

''. * John Maynard Smith and

Eörs Szathmáry Eörs Szathmáry (born 1959) is a Hungarian theoretical evolutionary biologist at the now-defunct Collegium Budapest Institute for Advanced Study and at the Department of Plant Taxonomy and Ecology of Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest. He is ...

(1995). '' The Major Transitions in Evolution''. * John Maynard Smith and Eörs Szathmáry (1999). '' The Origins of Life: From the Birth of Life to the Origin of Language''. *

Ernst Mayr Ernst Walter Mayr ( ; ; 5 July 1904 – 3 February 2005) was a German-American evolutionary biologist. He was also a renowned Taxonomy (biology), taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, Philosophy of biology, philosopher of biology, and ...

(2002). '' What Evolution Is''. * Ernst Mayr (2007). '' One Long Argument: Charles Darwin and the Genesis of Modern Evolutionary Thought''. * Kenneth R. Miller (2000). '' Finding Darwin's God: A Scientist's Search for Common Ground Between God and Evolution''. * Kenneth R. Miller (2008). ''

Only a Theory ''Only A Theory: Evolution and the Battle for America's Soul'' is a 2008 book by the American cell biologist and Roman Catholic Kenneth R. Miller. In the book, Miller examines the battle between evolution and intelligent design (ID), and explore ...

: Evolution and the Battle for America's Soul''.

N

National Academies of Science The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

(2008). '' Science, Evolution, and Creationism''. *

Bill Nye William Sanford Nye (; born November 27, 1955) is an American science communicator, television presenter, and former mechanical engineer. He is best known as the host of the science education television show '' Bill Nye the Science Guy'' (1 ...

(2014). '' Undeniable: Evolution and the Science of Creation''.

P

* Jean-Baptiste De Panafieu (2011). ''Evolution''. *

Donald Prothero Donald Ross Prothero (February 21, 1954) is an American geologist, paleontologist, and author who specializes in mammalian paleontology and magnetostratigraphy, a technique to date rock layers of the Cenozoic era and its use to date the climate ...

(2006). '' After the Dinosaurs: The Age of Mammals''. *

(2007). '' Evolution: What the Fossils Say and Why It Matters''. *

Steven Pinker Steven Arthur Pinker (born September 18, 1954) is a Canadian-American cognitive psychology, cognitive psychologist, psycholinguistics, psycholinguist, popular science author, and public intellectual. He is an advocate of evolutionary psycholo ...

(1997). ''

How the Mind Works ''How the Mind Works'' is a 1997 book by the Canadian-American cognitive psychologist Steven Pinker, in which the author attempts to explain some of the human mind's poorly understood functions and quirks in evolutionary terms. Drawing heavily on ...

''.

R

Matt Ridley Matthew White Ridley, 5th Viscount Ridley (born 7 February 1958), is a British science writer, journalist and businessman. He is known for his writings on science, the environment, and economics, and has been a regular contributor to ''The Tim ...

(1993). '' The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature''. * Matt Ridley (1996). '' The Origins of Virtue''. * Matt Ridley (1999). '' Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters''. * Matt Ridley (2003). ''

Nature Via Nurture ''Nature Via Nurture: Genes, Experience, and What Makes us Human'' is a 2003 book by Matt Ridley Matthew White Ridley, 5th Viscount Ridley (born 7 February 1958), is a British science writer, journalist and businessman. He is known for his ...

: Genes, Experience, and What Makes Us Human''. ** Reprinted as ''The Agile Gene: How Nature Turns on Nurture''. *

Michael Ruse Michael Escott Ruse (21 June 1940 – 1 November 2024) was a British-born Canadian philosopher of science who specialised in the philosophy of biology and worked on the relationship between science and religion, the creation–evolution contr ...

(1998). '' Taking Darwin Seriously: A Naturalistic Approach to Philosophy''. * Michael Ruse (1999). '' The Darwinian Revolution: Science Red in Tooth and Claw''. * Michael Ruse (2001). '' The Evolution Wars: A Guide to the Debates''. * Michael Ruse (2001). '' Mystery of Mysteries: Is Evolution a Social Construction?''. * Michael Ruse (2006). '' Darwinism and Its Discontents''. * Michael Ruse (2006). '' Evolution-Creation Struggle''.

S

Carl Sagan Carl Edward Sagan (; ; November 9, 1934December 20, 1996) was an American astronomer, planetary scientist and science communicator. His best known scientific contribution is his research on the possibility of extraterrestrial life, including e ...

(1977). ''

The Dragons of Eden ''The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence'' is a 1977 book by Carl Sagan, in which the author combines the fields of anthropology, evolutionary biology, psychology, and computer science to give a perspective on ho ...

: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence''. *

Neil Shubin Neil Shubin (born December 22, 1960) is an American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist and popular science writer. He is the Robert R. Bensley Professor of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, Associate Dean of Organismal Biology and Anatomy and ...

(2008). ''

Your Inner Fish HHMI Tangled Bank Studios is a film studio founded in 2012 by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is an American non-profit medical research organization headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland with addi ...

: A Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body''. * John Skoyles and

Dorion Sagan Dorion Sagan (born 1959) is an American essayist, fiction writer, poet, and theorist of ecology. He has written and co-authored books on culture, art, literature, evolution, and the history and philosophy of science, including ''Cosmic Apprentice ...

(2002). '' Up from Dragons: The evolution of human intelligence''. * Cameron M. Smith and Charles Sullivan (2006). '' The Top 10 Myths About Evolution''.

T

W

Nicholas Wade Nicholas Michael Landon Wade (born 17 May 1942) is a British author and journalist. He is the author of numerous books, and has served as staff writer and editor for ''Nature'', ''Science'', and the science section of ''The New York Times''. ...

(2006). '' Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors''. *

Jonathan Weiner Jonathan Weiner (born November 26, 1953) is an American writer of nonfiction books based on his biological observations, focusing particularly on evolution in the Galápagos Islands, genetics, and the environment. His latest book is ''Long for ...

(1994). ''

The Beak of the Finch ''The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time'' () is a 1994 nonfiction book about evolutionary biology, written by Jonathan Weiner. It won the 1995 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction. In 2014, a substantially unchanged 20th-a ...

: A Story of Evolution in Our Time''. *

David Sloan Wilson David Sloan Wilson (born 1949) is an American evolutionary biologist and a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences and Anthropology at Binghamton University. He is a son of author Sloan Wilson, a co-founder of Evolution Institu ...

(2007). '' Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin's Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives''. *

(2019). ''This View of Life: Completing the Darwinian Revolution'' * Bernard Wood (2006). '' Human Evolution: A Very Short Introduction''.

Z

Carl Zimmer Carl Zimmer (born 1966) is an American popular science writer, blogger, columnist, and journalist who specializes in the topics of evolution, parasites, and heredity. The author of many books, he contributes science essays to publications such ...

(2001). '' Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea''. * Carl Zimmer (2005). '' Smithsonian Intimate Guide to Human Origins''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Popular science books on evolution Evolution-related lists * Lists of books